The 11.7th magnidute Bear Paw Galaxy got its name from its unique shape. This distant and faint galaxy is classed as a Peculiar spiral, and does not maintain the normal spiral appearance of most galaxies. The left "toe" contains several pink HII regions along with one very large and bright one, along with bluish stellar associations. Hints of more small hydrogen clouds also appear in the right "toe" as well. Another amusing object is the dim galaxy at the right, NGC2537a. Hints of spiral structure can be faintly seen, along with a yellow core typical of spirals. This galaxy is 15.3 magnitude, class SBT5, and is considered to be a multi-galaxy system. Close examination will show it resembles M51, with one faint arm extending to the companion below.

Instrument:  12.5" f/5 Home made Newtonian
CCD Camera:  SBIG237
Exposure:  LRGB = 40:20:20:24 (RGB Binned 2x2)
Filters:  RGB Tricolor
Location:  Payson, Arizona
Elevation:  5150 ft.
Sky:  Seeing 9/10, Transparency 8/10
Outside Temperature:  25 F
CCD Temperature:  -25 F
Processing:  Maxim DL, Photoshop, PW Pro.